WSU Named a Tree Campus USA

April 18, 2012

OGDEN, Utah – The Arbor Day Foundation has named Weber State University a 2011 Tree Campus USA for its commitment to effective community forestry management.

WSU achieved the designation by meeting the required five core standards for sustainable campus forestry: a tree advisory committee, a campus tree-care plan, dedicated annual expenditures for its campus tree program, an Arbor Day observance and the sponsorship of student service-learning projects.

“Weber State and its facilities management group are dedicated to the perpetuation and preservation of our urban forest,” said WSU landscape manager Brian Hadley. “By implementing our sustainable management plan, we will continue to provide the necessary maintenance and care to ensure that WSU faculty, staff and students will be able to enjoy the benefits of its trees for a long time. We are passionate about the care of this resource and hope that this passion is contagious.”

WSU currently has 3,500 trees on campus. Of the 1,475 that have been inventoried, there are 30 different species. The majority of the trees are honey locusts, Colorado blue spruces, crabapples and Austrian pines.

As in the past, WSU will hold an Arbor Day tree planting this year. On April 27 at 11 a.m. Facilities Management will plant trees in the northwest part of campus, near the north roundabout. Other activities will include a tree identification game and a tree climbing demonstration.

About Tree Campus USA: Tree Campus USA, a national program launched in 2008 by the Arbor Day Foundation, honors colleges and universities and their leaders for promoting healthy trees and engaging students and staff in the spirit of conservation. Tree Campus USA is supported by a grant from Toyota.

“Students throughout the country are passionate about sustainability and community improvement, which makes Weber State’s emphasis on well-maintained and healthy trees so important,” said John Rosenow, chief executive of the Arbor Day Foundation. “By achieving Tree Campus USA recognition, Weber State University will continue to set an example for other colleges and universities and give students a chance to give back to both their campus community and the community at-large.”

During 2011, the Arbor Day Foundation and Toyota helped campuses throughout the country plant 30,000 trees, and Tree Campus USA colleges and universities have invested more than $22 million in campus forest management. More information about the Tree Campus USA program is available at arborday.org/TreeCampusUSA.

About the Arbor Day Foundation: The Arbor Day Foundation is a nonprofit conservation and education organization of one million members with the mission to inspire people to plant, nurture and celebrate trees. More information on the Foundation and its programs can be found at arborday.org.